


Co-adaptation

by SlothBaby (crimsonherbarium)



Category: Marvel, Venom (Movie 2018)
Genre: Angst, Anne stays with Dan, Comfort/Angst, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Other, Protective Venom Symbiote (Marvel), Venom is the real love of Eddie's life don't worry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-24
Updated: 2018-10-24
Packaged: 2019-08-06 22:11:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 809
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16396049
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/crimsonherbarium/pseuds/SlothBaby
Summary: Just because you've found someone new doesn't mean it doesn't hurt to see your ex moving on.(In which Eddie finds out Anne is getting married, and Venom helps him cope.)





	Co-adaptation

Of course there was a part of Eddie that still loved Anne.

Sure, they were friends now, and he appreciated that. He'd rather have her in his life in that capacity than not at all. Anne _got_ him, in a way that no one else ever had. Well, no one except Venom, but it was hard to top the kind of understanding that came from having someone literally connected to your brain.

All that aside, though—they'd been engaged. He'd been prepared to spend the rest of his life with her. He'd _wanted_ to spend the rest of his life with her. His life had been pretty great, before he'd gone and fucked it all up. And it was his fault. He knew that. And he knew that he really didn't deserve to have her after everything he'd done. He didn't want to fuck things up for her, anyway. She was happy.

That didn't change the fact that it fucking hurt when he found out she was engaged to someone else.

At least she'd had the guts to tell him directly. And he loved her enough to force a smile and try to be supportive. "Yeah, Annie? That's great. I'm really happy for you. Dan's a great guy. You deserve the best." He'd done his best to stomp down the hiss of outrage that was Venom in the back of his head. "Later," he'd muttered. "Not now."

Well, now it was later. And as Eddie sat on the threadbare couch in his apartment drinking a lukewarm beer, he felt numb. He stared at the TV, watching, but not really taking in, the evening news.

Glimpses of the past kept intruding on his thoughts. Anne's arms wrapped around his waist, laughing in his ear as she rode behind him on his motorcycle. The way she rehearsed depositions in the mirror sometimes, her lips barely moving but her expression always determined. The way she'd smiled when he'd gotten down on one knee and showed her the ring—he'd saved for months to buy that ring, he'd wanted something that was every bit as gorgeous as she was. 

Eddie slammed his beer down on the coffee table and buried his face in his hands. "Fuck," he said into his palms. "Just...fuck."

 **Eddie,** Venom prodded. **We're going to get her back.**

"No." Eddie said quietly. "No, we're not."

 **She should be with us!** The symbiote seethed, a black tendril curling outward from Eddie's shoulder like a clenched fist. **We belong together!**

Eddie sighed. "No, we don't. Look, it's over, okay?" His throat felt tight as he spoke, his eyes stinging with tears that threatened to well over. "It's over," he whispered. He took a deep breath, wiping angrily at his eyes. "It's time to accept that."

**Would it make you feel better if we ate Dan? We can eat Dan.**

"We are _not_ eating Dan."

**It would solve all of our problems, Eddie...**

Eddie sighed. "We talked about this. You're only allowed to eat bad people. Dan's not a bad person. I actually kind of like him."

 **His actions are causing you pain,** Venom reasoned. **I find it unpleasant.**

"Yeah, well, sometimes life hurts. It's something you gotta learn deal with if you want to stay here." Eddie shrugged, wiping his nose on his sleeve.

 **Fine.** Venom shot tendrils out of Eddie's back, wrapping them around Eddie tightly in an imitation of a hug. **I'm still in favor of eating him. But I will refrain. This time.**

More tendrils. Eddie could faintly hear the click of the stove turning on in the background and some indistinct clattering as the symbiote dug through his kitchen cabinets. After a few minutes the kettle whistled shrilly, and an oily black tentacle deposited a chipped mug of green tea on the table in front of him.

Eddie smiled wanly. "Thanks, darling."

 **You're all I have too, Eddie.** The tendrils wrapped around Eddie squeezed him for a moment and then receded. **When one of us suffers, both of us suffer.**

"I know." Eddie took a sip of the tea, winced at the sickly sweetness of it. "Jesus, how much sugar did you put in this?"

**Six spoons. I like it sweet.**

"Shit, you're not kidding." Eddie grimaced at the sensation of the syrupy liquid coating his teeth. He took another gulp, relaxing a bit as the heat of it worked on the knot in his stomach. Venom purred in the back of his head, already at work on absorbing the sugar. "Well, what do you want to do now? Sitting around moping isn't helping either of us."

 **Eat,** Venom said gleefully.

"I told you already, we are _not_ eating Dan." Eddie replied, pulling on his sneakers.

Though it was physically impossible, Eddie got the sense that Venom was rolling his eyes. **Fine. McDonald's, then.**

"You got it."

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! This is my first foray into anything Marvel-related. I just saw the movie two days ago and I'm already obsessed.


End file.
